A small island off the coast of South Korea is making giant strides in securing its agricultural future. Through advanced hydroponic technology and strategic breeding, Jeju Island’s Agricultural Technology Center is not only meeting its seed potato goals but far exceeding them, creating a resilient model for regional food security.
The Jeju Island Agricultural Technology Center has announced a resounding success for its 2025 autumn planting season: the production of 10.4 tonnes of certified, disease-free seed potatoes using hydroponic systems. This achievement shatters its original 7-tonne target by 149%, ensuring a stable and high-quality seed supply for local farmers. This initiative is a critical component of the island’s broader strategy to strengthen its potato self-sufficiency, reduce dependency on imported seed, and combat soil-borne diseases that have threatened farmer livelihoods for decades.
Hydroponic Excellence: The Engine of Clean Seed Production
The cornerstone of Jeju’s success is its sophisticated hydroponic (aeroponic) propagation system, a method the center has perfected since 2009. This soilless technology allows for the production of minitubers in a completely controlled environment, effectively eliminating the risk of soil-borne pathogens like scab and rhizoctonia. The center produces over 15 tonnes of disease-free seed potatoes annually through this method. The recent harvest supplied 5,680 kg of the ‘Tamna’ variety and 4,750 kg of the ‘Daeji’ variety, all certified disease-free by the National Seed Resources.
This focus on “clean seed” is a globally recognized best practice. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) consistently emphasizes that access to quality seed is the single most important factor in sustainable crop production, potentially increasing yields by 30-50% compared to saved seed from previous harvests. Jeju’s model directly addresses this, providing farmers with the best possible start to their season.
Scaling Impact: From 10 Tonnes to 3,000 Hectares
The scalability of this effort is what makes it truly impactful. The 10.4 tonnes of high-generation seed potato (G1/G2) produced this season are not for direct planting. Instead, they form the foundation of a multiplication pipeline. According to the center’s estimates, this seed can be multiplied over two generations to supply enough planting material for approximately 3,000 hectares. This is more than sufficient to achieve the island’s goal of self-sufficiency, dramatically cutting the need for farmers to purchase expensive external seed and insulating them from supply chain disruptions.
Confronting Legacy Challenges with Modern Genetics
A key driver for this initiative is the need to solve a persistent agronomic problem. For over 50 years, Jeju farmers have primarily grown the ‘Daeji’ variety, introduced from Japan. Decades of continuous cropping (monoculture) have led to a severe buildup of soil-borne diseases like black scurf (Rhizoctonia solani), severely impacting tuber quality and farm income. In response, the Technology Center is aggressively promoting its new, resilient variety, ‘Tamna’, which is bred for resistance to these pathogens and higher yield potential. This strategic shift is crucial for establishing “seed sovereignty” – control over their own genetic material – and building a sustainable, circular production system.
Jeju Island’s accomplishment is a powerful case study in proactive agricultural management. It demonstrates that regional food security is not an abstract goal but an achievable reality through targeted investment in technology (hydroponics), robust public-sector research (varietal development), and a cohesive strategy that connects research institutions directly with farmers. For other regions grappling with seed dependency and soil health issues, Jeju’s model offers a clear blueprint: control the “seed chip” with advanced technology, breed for local resilience, and build a closed-loop system that keeps value and sovereignty within the local agricultural community.
